Strawberry Shortcake Sundae

Ok, correction, SECOND favorite season of the year. Fall, you know you got the #1 spot in my heart.

But strawberry season is a VERY close second. There’s nothing quite like going down to your local farmers market to wander the stalls of fresh produce and pastries on a warm Saturday morning. Yes, we’re THOSE people. Sometimes we buy stuff. Sometimes we just look at the fruit and vegetables. Is that weird? In retrospect, I feel like that might sound weird…

But when the strawberries come out, oh man, we’re buying that shit by the flat.

Strawberry jam? Check. <– Yes, we’re those people, too. The people that can and jam. I may or may not currently have a small closet full of homemade dill pickles and apricot jam. Don’t judge.

Strawberry covered breakfasts? Check.

Strawberry shortcake? Ah hell to the yeah!

I’m pretty sure you just can’t have strawberry season without strawberry shortcake. And every year, I make it my mission to reinvent my recipe. I’m not saying strawberry shortcake needs any improving (girl, you know you’re perfect), but I may have made it a minor life goal to make as many things into strawberry shortcake as possible.

And this year’s iteration is the strawberry shortcake sundae: the doughnut edition.

Close your eyes… Wait, no, don’t close your eyes, you need to read this first…

Picture crisp homemade doughnuts so fresh the sugary coating sticks to your fingers… Slightly warm strawberry syrup because you literally just made that shit… And it’s f*ckin’ delicious… Smooth vanilla ice cream with a thick swirl of strawberry… And a heaping spoonful of crisp, red strawberries…

Ok, now close your eyes. Or, you know, you could just look at this picture. THIS is what strawberry season is all about.

Strawberry Shortcake Sundae

I’ve always loved a traditional strawberry shortcake, but these strawberry shortcake sundaes may just take the cake! These sweet little summer treats feature a homemade sugared doughnut with a scoop of strawberry and vanilla ice cream topped with a homemade strawberry syrup. Summer never tasted so good!

Author:The Simple, Sweet Life

Prep Time:8 hours

Total Time:8 hours

Yield:121x

Category:Dessert

Cuisine:American

Scale

Ingredients

For the strawberry syrup:

1 lb fresh strawberries + extra for garnishing

1 cup sugar

3/4 cup water

For the ice cream:

2 cups heavy whipping cream

1 (14 oz) can sweetened condensed milk

1 tsp vanilla extract

For the doughnuts:

1 1/4cupswarm milk

2tablespoonsactive dry yeast

1/2 cup + 1tbspgranulated sugar

6tbsp unsaltedbutter,softened

1egg

3 1/2cupsall purpose flour

Instructions

In a large pan, combine the sugar and water for the strawberry syrup. Cut up 1 lb of strawberries and add them to the pan. Bring to a boil and cook over medium-high heat until the strawberries begin to break up (about 10 minutes). Reduce the heat to a simmer and continue cooking until the liquid is reduced by half (about 10 minutes). Pour the cooked mixture into a blender and puree until smooth. Transfer your syrup to a bowl, cover and allow to cool in the refrigerator.

In a large bowl, whip the heavy whipping cream until stiff peaks form. Add the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract and continue whipping until smooth. Add 1/4 cup of the cooled strawberry syrup and gently swirl.

Pour the ice cream mixture into a parchment/wax paper lined loaf pan. Add 1/4 cup of the strawberry syrup to the top and gently swirl. Place the ice cream in the freezer and allow to set (about 8 hours).

For the doughnuts, combine 1 tbsp granulated sugar with the warm milk and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Allow to proof for 5-10 minutes or until frothy. Add the butter, egg and 3 cups of flour and beat on medium speed with a dough hook until the dough is smooth and elastic (about 3-5 minutes). The dough will be soft but shouldn’t be sticky. If it’s still sticky, you can add the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl and allow to rise in a warm area until about double in size (30 minutes – 1 hour).

Roll the doughnut dough out to about 1/2″ thick and cut out 12 doughnuts using a doughnut cutter or round cookie cutters. Cover the doughnuts while the oil heats.

In a large pot, heat at least 2″ of frying oil until it reaches 350F. Working in batches, use a slotted metal spoon or spatula to careful transfer your doughnuts to the oil. Fry the doughnuts until golden brown (30 seconds – 1 minute) and flip. Transfer the fried doughnuts to a cooling rack lined with paper towel. Once the doughnuts are cool enough to handle, roll them in the remaining 1/2 cup of granulated sugar.

Garnish the doughnuts with slices of fresh strawberries and top with a scoop of your homemade ice cream and strawberry syrup.

This looks delicious!! The donut had the right combination of crispy and sugar, the ice cream the great combination of rich color and fresh strawberry swirl and the syrup was the icing on the shortcake! I can see you’ve used Hood strawberries… the best!! I love your photos, creativity, and how you create new favorites:)